Enrolment is moving forward. Let’s keep going together.
Every patient enrolled in accordance with the protocol contributes to research on musculoskeletal point-of-care ultrasound in general practice.
113 patients enrolled.
A target of 300.
Thank you to all the investigators bringing ECHOSTEOM to life in their everyday practice.
We have passed the first third of the target. The next milestone is 150 patients: 37 more enrolments to reach half the planned sample size.
Enrolment is ongoing. Data analysis and publication of the findings are still to come.
Visit the investigator sectionNext milestone: 150 patients
37 more patients to reach it.
187 more patients are needed to reach the study target.
Updated on .
Figures provided by the study team · Updated manually.
The study timeline
The work completed so far, the current phase and the next steps.
- January 2022
The study takes shape
Following a review of the literature on point-of-care ultrasound, Dr Joris Dereant identified a lack of studies, particularly in the musculoskeletal field. This led to the design of ECHOSTEOM as part of his medical thesis.
- March 2022
Writing the protocol
With support from Prof. Di Patrizio, Dr Boris Gass and Prof. Albuisson, a rigorous methodology was developed from studies published in peer-reviewed journals. The research protocol was then written. The sample size calculation established that at least 300 patients were required to achieve the intended statistical precision of 5%.
- April 2022
Refining the study protocol
Feedback from the methodology committee and experts helped refine the inclusion criteria, data collection arrangements and statistical analysis strategy.
- April–July 2022
Investigator recruitment
Doctors using ultrasound in their consultations were contacted by telephone through online directories, including Doctolib, Maia and the Ameli health directory. Practitioners attending university and other ultrasound courses were also approached.
A recruitment message was shared through training courses, Echo-Loco and social media. These efforts recruited 41 investigators after eligibility checks and a detailed presentation of the study.
- May 2022
Application to ReSP-Ir 2022
ECHOSTEOM was submitted to the ReSP-Ir 2022 call for projects, which supports innovative research led by primary care professionals.
- October 2022
Selected for ReSP-Ir 2022
ECHOSTEOM was selected for the ReSP-Ir 2022 programme. This interregional primary care research call, coordinated by the GIRCI and supported by the French Ministry of Health, selects and supports projects on the basis of scientific quality and feasibility.
- October 2022
ReSP-Ir funding awarded
The project received €114,985 through the interregional primary care research programme. Following scientific review, this funding supports study coordination, data collection and analysis, dissemination of findings, and remuneration of participating investigators.
- 20 September 2026
Study in progress
Research involving human participants to advance medical or biological knowledge falls within the French RIPH regulatory framework and requires a favourable opinion from a research ethics committee (CPP).
ECHOSTEOM is a category 2 RIPH study. Implementation began after a favourable CPP opinion.
As of 20 September 2026, 113 of the planned 300 patients have been enrolled (37.7% of the target).
Six new investigators are being recruited to strengthen the ECHOSTEOM network and accelerate patient enrolment. Thank you to all the investigators already involved in the study.
- Upcoming
Completion of patient enrolment
- Upcoming
Data analysis
- Upcoming
Writing the paper
- Upcoming
Submission to a scientific journal